Over the last four years, the center has partnered with 420 ranches across 17 states, engaging more than 9 million acres of grazing lands in collaborative research designed to equip producers with ranch-scale solutions to tackle modern grazing and rangeland management challenges from the soil up.<\/p>\n
\u201cSoil is the foundation of every acre of grazing land in the country,\u201d said Jeff Goodwin, Ph.D., director of the\u00a0CGRM\u00a0and\u00a0Texas A&M AgriLife Research<\/a>\u00a0assistant professor in the\u00a0Texas A&M\u00a0Department of Rangeland, Wildlife and Fisheries Management<\/a>. \u201cBy ensuring ranchers have access to science-based management tools and practices that support soil health and regeneration, we are helping promote long-term grazing land productivity while promoting operational and economic resiliency.\u201d\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n Producer-directed research tackles ranch-scale challenges<\/p>\n Texas is the nation\u2019s leading beef-producing state and home to the largest amount of privately owned grazing lands<\/a> in the country, Goodwin said.<\/p>\n These landscapes provide myriad services, ranging from food and fiber to water quality and biodiversity, yet the land and the industry they support face mounting obstacles ranging from soil degradation and woody encroachment to land conversion. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cRanching operations face increasingly complex ecologic, economic and social challenges impacting the ability to maintain or enhance grazing land and operational health,\u201d Goodwin said.<\/p>\n To address those challenges, the center utilizes ranch-based data collection and applied, ranch-scale research conducted directly on working lands.<\/p>\n Ranching is inherently complex and dynamic \u2014 from weather conditions to markets. Our efforts focus on helping producers make proactive decisions that promote ecologic and economic adaptability and foster long-term productivity and profitability \u2014 we want to keep them ahead of the curve.<\/p>\n Jeff Goodwin, Ph.D. Much of CGRM\u2019s work focuses on measuring key grazing management metrics, such as grazing duration, rest period and stock densities, to understand how these management \u201clevers\u201d shape ecological function, animal performance and economic outcomes.<\/p>\n The goal is to identify practical management adjustments that can improve forage production, water infiltration and overall ranch performance, said Jenna Likins, Ph.D., CGRM research program manager.<\/p>\n \u201cWe prioritize ranch-scale research,\u201d Likins said. \u201cOur focus is to understand the management actions taking place on working rangelands and how they correlate with ecological and economic outcomes for producers.\u201d<\/p>\n Building producer networks to share knowledge<\/p>\n Documenting these management practices and quantifying positive outcomes is just part of the center\u2019s mission. Equally important, Goodwin said, is ensuring those insights move beyond individual ranches.<\/p>\n Become a part of a producer-focused network<\/p>\n Learn how you can engage your ranch with the research, programs and resources available through the Center for Grazinglands and Ranch Management.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want that knowledge to cross the ranch gate and benefit all producers and the grazing lands they steward,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Through a collaboration with American Farmland Trust<\/a>, the center has accelerated the adoption of adaptive grazing and soil health practices by assisting in the development of a statewide Grazing Network Mentor<\/a> program that fosters producer-to-producer knowledge exchange through virtual and in-person workshops.<\/p>\n The Ranchworthy YouTube channel<\/a>, produced and managed by CGRM, further amplifies this producer-led information network, allowing successful ranchers from across the U.S. to share the strategies, perspectives and technologies that have best served their operations.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n CGRM has also made great strides in engaging producers with industry supply chain partners through the Resilient Ranch Network<\/a>.<\/p>\n A partnership with the Texas Grazing Land Coalition<\/a> and the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service<\/a>, the Resilient Ranch Network connects livestock producers with industry professionals to facilitate impactful conversations about meaningful sustainability measures across the beef supply chain.<\/p>\n \u201cGiving producers a seat at the table to share their perspectives has been very meaningful to us and the ranchers involved,\u201d Likins said.<\/p>\n A focus on proactive decisions for a dynamic industry<\/p>\n Looking ahead, Goodwin and Likins said the center will continue to focus on providing producers, agencies and industry partners with actionable insights for data-driven, adaptive grazing management.<\/p>\n \u201cRanching is inherently complex and dynamic \u2014 from weather conditions to markets,\u201d Goodwin said. \u201cOur efforts focus on helping producers make proactive decisions that promote ecologic and economic adaptability and foster long-term productivity and profitability \u2014 we want to keep them ahead of the curve.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Ep8_EmmonsRanch-1.jpeg\")
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\nThe Texas A&M Center for Grazinglands and Ranch Management brings researchers and livestock producers together to better understand how grazing practices influence the ecological and economic resilience of rangeland ecosystems and ranching operations across the U.S. (Rachel Haywood-Baize\/Texas A&M AgriLife) <\/p>\n
Director, Center for Grazinglands and Ranch Management<\/p>\n
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